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13
Statistics and Social Conditions of the Borough.
Area (in acres) 2,265 (including 12 acres covered by water).
Registrar-General's estimate of resident population, mid-1936 90,700.
Number of inhabited houses (end of 1936) according to Rate Books—
9,747 dwelling houses, 2,997 maisonetted and divided houses,
3,872 separate flats.
Rateable value (at 6th April, 1936) £1,515,114.
Sum represented by a penny rate £6,312 19s. 6d.
Social Conditions.
Since the conclusion of the War, the changes that had begun
to be noticeable in the social conditions in the Borough have been
accentuated. Large houses that can no longer be occupied by one
family are frequently maisonetted; mansions with large gardens that
become vacant are often demolished and the site covered with blocks
of flats; houses in certains streets which were formerly occupied by
the middle class are now let in lodgings and are registered and
periodically inspected under the byelaws relating to tenement houses.
A large part of the Borough was built over in the years following
1851—there was for instance an increase in the population during the
decade ending 1861 of 59 per cent., and during the decade ending 1871
of 68 per cent. These houses, except those which are kept in good
condition and repair and are often occupied by the owner, are naturally
requiring more supervision by the Sanitary Staff. This demand must
increase with the passing of time, as the houses approach the end of
their leases, for there is naturally a disinclination to spend money on
property which will be demolished in the near future. The officers
of the Public Health Department are therefore called upon to take
action in the case of very many houses which would formerly have
been beyond such need of control.
Extent of Unemployment.
I am indebted to the Chief Officer of Public Assistance of the
London County Council for the following information relating to the
year 1936, which was extracted from the periodical returns received
by the County Council from the Statistical Branch of the Ministry
of Labour:—The number of men registered as unemployed varied
from 567 in August to 973 in January, and the unemployed women
from 213 in June to 297 in February. Calculated upon the number of